We'll be Back when This is All Over
by Daemon hunter
Summary: What if Aeris didn't go to the lost city of the Ancients alone? How might that have changed things.First person POV. Shoujoai.


_We'll be Back when This is All Over_

_Summary:_ What if Aeris didn't go to the lost City of the Ancients alone? How might that have changed things?

_Disclaimer:_ I could make a disclaimer joke but why bother? We all know I don't own Final Fantasy VII.

_Author Notes:_ You should be aware that this story is shoujo-ai (I believe this is the right spelling). If I've got the meaning of this word confused then put simply this has girl/girl stuff in it. So if you don't like that sort of thing yet you continue to read, well, don't waste my time blaming me. You have been forewarned.

It should have been the last chapter in my story. It should have been the last tale that people might tell of me. But by the grace of an angel, my angel, I was spared. My would-be murderer is dead now and the world, thanks to our intervention, will know at least a moment's peace. She stands beside me, gently brushing her hand against mine so no-one else can see, and I smile as ghostly as the Holy magic outside. The world has been saved. I have been saved. All by the grace of angels.

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It was late when we arrived in Gongaga town. We'd been travelling without rest upon the Tiny Bronco for hours to get there. I'm not sure to this day why Cid decided that we would come to Gongaga but there you are. All the way I sat in silence, with Tifa on one side and an unconscious Cloud on the other. For a part of the journey Tifa had been tending to the bruises on my face with her restore materia which Cloud's beating had made. Don't get me wrong for a second, allow me to explain. Cloud wasn't in his right mind. Our enemy Sephiroth, using his own Jenova cells, manipulated Cloud's cells and his actions. Call it mind control if that simplifies the explanation. It was really Sephiroth beating me with a Cloud shaped cane.

Tifa and the others (all of whom were talking freely with one another) kept glancing warily at me when they thought I wasn't looking, usually when I checked on Cloud. Normally I'm naturally talkative so my silence unnerved them. I think also because I choose to sit next to Cloud they feared that the same thing would happen again. But I wasn't scared. Cloud's my best friend. I knew that he never wanted to hurt me and that was good enough for me.

We arrived in Gongaga at nightfall. All of us were incredibly sore (since it's a tight squeeze fitting nine people in a small plane) and tired so we immediately went to the inn. Cid and Vincent carried Cloud in if you were wondering. There isn't much to tell here, not really. We checked in, I shared a room with Tifa and Yuffie and I fell asleep. That's where it got interesting.

I've been told (by both Tifa and Yuffie) that I'm a very heavy sleeper so it wasn't surprising that that night I had a dream. Being a Cetra I have the uncanny ability to keep a conscious mind if I want during my dreams, meaning I can remember them as clearly as if they'd occurred in the real world. I remember that I dreamt of blackness. There was nothing. All I could see was my pink clad form and a yellow orb hanging ominously above me.

"Aeris."

The voice echoed about me as if we were standing in a tunnel. It was a voice I was familiar with but not one I'd ever heard in my dreams before.

"Mom?" I called uncertainly into the dark.

And there she appeared just as she looked when I last saw her alive, although she was much healthier than I remember her. She pushed some of her long hair out of her eyes and smiled warmly at me, a smile which I returned.

"Where are we?" I asked her.

"In your mind, dear," she replied. Her voice was also different to how I remembered it. When I was a child she sounded so weary, so forlorn. But now there was definitely something else in her voice, something lighter and more cheery. "I've come to give you a message. It's very important that you listen to me."

"Ok mom," I responded my voice no more certain than it was before.

"Do you see the orb above you?" she asked, pointing to what I assume was the sky.

"Yeah, what is it?"

"Jenova, or rather what the planet will be when it becomes Jenova's. She intends, as I think you already know, to destroy the world and use it as a vessel to the next. She has the black materia. She will summon Meteor and all life will end."

"How can it be stopped?" I asked in desperation.

"It can't be stopped."

Hearing those words my heart dropped to somewhere near my stomach.

"Meteor will be summoned," she continued. "But you can stop it from destroying the world. Listen carefully. You must go to the city of the Ancients on the northern continent…"

I could tell you about the instructions she gave me but they would only bore you, and besides it would ruin the story.

"You must go now, tonight. I believe in you my beloved Aeris."

And she disappeared. It all disappeared and I jerked awake. The room was pitch black, just like in the dream. However I could hear Yuffie's loud snoring and Tifa's light breathing in the bed's either side of mine. I didn't question the dream for a second, knowing somehow that it was the genuine article. So I made to leave. Dressing in complete silence I took only my staff and materia. Closing the door silently behind me I walked as stealthily as possible down the corridor. In the kitchen I stole enough food and water to get me to the northern city. But I couldn't help but leave some gil on the counter afterwards. I'd managed to get to the lobby of the inn without alerting anybody but just as I had my hand on the doorknob something, or rather someone stopped me.

"Aeris?"

Standing halfway down the stairs, still dressed in her bed things, was Tifa and she looked none too happy with me.

"Where are you going?" she asked, her tone accusatory and her hands quite firmly placed on her hips.

"N-nowhere," I stammered. "Just going for a walk that's all."

"With your staff?"

"Well there are monsters about aren't there?" I said, impressed with the speed of my own lie. But somehow she saw straight through me. Tifa's pretty scary when she's angry and if it hadn't been for the fact that she didn't want to disturb everyone things could've been worse for me. She stared at me with those big crimson eyes of hers, narrowed in suspicion, while I simply tried to hold my ground.

"Don't lie to me Aeris. Where are you going?" she repeated, her voice a deadly shade of rage. She started descending the stairs again and only stopped when she was in my arms reach. Even her movements seemed to be angry at me.

I didn't want to tell her. I wasn't going to tell her. Along with Cloud Tifa was one of my very best friends and I would be damned if she got dragged into it.

"I told you-"

"Don't lie Aeris, please," she said, cutting me off. "Wherever it is you're going you can wait until the morning. Come back to bed."

The last thing she said was a direct order, accompanied by a pointed finger at the stairs. There was nothing for it anymore. I simply threw caution to the winds.

I told her everything. She said nothing as I explained myself to her but I could tell by the way she looked at me that her anger was subsiding.

"So I have to go," I said. "Tell Cloud where I've gone when he wakes up, please."

She said nothing, but simply looked blankly at me. I'd expected her to question me, hell, even accuse me of being deluded to think the dream was real. But she didn't. She said nothing. With that silence behind me I turned around again but just like last time my hand froze on the doorknob. Tifa had grabbed my other wrist before I could even open the door.

"Don't go," she said in a voice so quiet that I could barely even hear her.

I turned to try and get my wrist free but instead saw something that I never wished to see again. Tifa was crying in almost complete silence. The only sound she made was an occasional sniff. I'd never seen her like this before. Normally Tifa was the strong one. The one we could all rely on. The one who had comforted me when I was upset on more than one occasion. Now the tables had turned.

And I didn't like it.

"Tifa…"

"No," she said in a voice a little louder than she probably intended. I looked nervously to the stairs for a few moments but fortunately heard no telltale signs of someone coming. "No," she said again, "I won't l-let you go Aeris. S-Sephiroth's out there and he's dangerous. H-He might f-follow you and attack you when you're by yourself. I've lost t-too many people I care about in the past and you won't be one of them. So you're staying here, where it's safe."

"I have to go," I responded, my eyes glued to the floor. "I'm sorry."

This time I didn't stop. Before Tifa could even move I had wrenched my wrist free and pulled the front door open, closed it behind me and set off running down the deserted street. It was dark, but the light of the moon illuminated the path so I could see where I was going. The moment I looked back bright yellow light spilled onto the street behind me before being snuffed out with a bang. Then I could hear her footsteps, matching my pace with ease.

I kept running ever faster to try and shake her off. If I could just reach the trees then I'd be able to lose her. Just as I saw my salvation though something hard ploughed into my back and knocked me off my feet, right onto my back.

It was quite a few delirious moments later that I could see what it was that had landed on top of me. Really I already knew but the ragged breathing and the occasional drop of water that hit my face made it certain. It was Tifa that had tackled me to the ground. Before I could even move she was sitting on my legs and holding both my wrists together just above my head so I couldn't move at all.

"I told you. You aren't going anywhere."

"Tifa let… me… go," I demanded as I struggled against my captor's grip. But she was too strong and held onto me without even struggling.

"I can't do that. I'll make sure that you aren't going _anywhere_," she responded. Her breath was tickling my face and I could easily see that her face was only a few inches from mine.

"Tifa let me go or I'll have to hurt you."

The threat did nothing to deter her. She held my wrists so tightly I could already feel the bruising coming, but she hadn't noticed that I had materia in my bracer.

"Sorry but no can do," she said while giving me a sarcastic smile

"Fine." It happened in a flash of brilliant light. Using a spell I've never even heard of before Tifa finally released her grip and flew backwards through the air and landed ten feet away. I struggled to my feet, picked up my staff and made for the trees again. But once again she managed to stop me. She crawled as fast as she could behind me and pulled my feet from under me, making me land face first on the ground again. This time I was quicker to react but Tifa was still fast enough to rip my bracer from my arm and kick my staff away. Eventually we ended up in the same position as we'd been in before.

"Tifa you're making this harder than it has to be."

She said nothing. All I could feel was the breath on my face, all I could see were her eyes filled with doubt. She seemed to be struggling with herself, some inner conflict that was tearing her apart. Eventually though one side, whatever it was, was victorious.

"Aeris… I can't let you go."

"Why not?" I asked shrilly.

It all happened so fast. Before I even knew what was happening Tifa had closed the last few inches between us and seized my lips with her own. Her grip on my wrists lessened and I wrenched them free. But all thoughts of escape were long gone. Instead my fingers interlocked behind her neck and I pushed harder into the kiss. Eventually, far too soon in my opinion, she broke away from me.

"That's why," she said her voice a little lighter than the dark tone she'd been using before. I could feel her arms pushing underneath my back to hold me closer to her. She never knew but she had me under more control with that grip than any of the more forcible ones she'd used that night. A grip that could and did make any boy (or girl) in her arms docile within minutes, or, in my case, seconds. I brought her head down onto my shoulder and sighed with bliss, everything but Tifa forgotten. I don't know how long we lay together with time itself seeming to stop for us. It was probably the best moment of my life. But it was replaced by the next one when Tifa spoke again.

"Aeris…" she said uncertainly

"Yeah?"

"I think… I think I love you. Does… that mean anything to you?" Her voice was full of nerves now.

"You're sure?"

She smiled at me in a nervous kind of way.

"I have been for a while."

"Well then, ask yourself this. Would I be lying here in the middle of the road holding you like this, with you on top of _me_ no less, if it didn't? You know Tifa you can be really silly sometimes," I said, giggling slightly, still light headed from the kiss. Tifa laughed too, although still uncertainly. "And Tifa," I said, moving my head so I could look her in the eyes, "I fear that I may love you too."

The only response I got was her holding me just a little tighter and a strong smile on her face and in her eyes.

But reality has a horrible way of creeping up on you when you least want it too. Suddenly I remembered the dream, the journey I had to make, everything I'd done that night.

"I'm sorry Tifa but I still have to go," I said sullenly, not wanting to do anything of the sort. And I made to get up. Every fibre of my body was screaming at me not to go, to stay with Tifa on the ground, but my duty wouldn't allow it. I rolled us over so now Tifa was lying on the ground, and stood unsteadily without meeting any resistance from her. She just kept looking at me with those big eyes of hers again.

"If I can't stop you then let me go with you," she said simply.

This was yet another surprise that I hadn't bargained for but compared to some of the others it was quite small. Really I didn't want her to come but I couldn't see any way of escaping her short of really hurting her. I nodded slightly but in the darkness she didn't see me do it.

"If you're going to go I will to. Besides I can protect you and look after you and-"

"I already nodded," I responded with fake annoyance. "I guess I won't be able to shake you off otherwise."

Tifa jumped back to her feet and started running back to the inn. For a fleeting second I really thought she was going to tell Cloud or someone that I was going but she looked back and said, "Back in a minute."

Actually she took five but I still waited in the middle of the empty road until I saw the bright yellow light flood onto the street again. A small smile appeared as Tifa's silhouette came closer. Still feigning annoyance I tapped my foot in impatience just loud enough for her to hear.

"Sorry about that," she said breathlessly.

"Took your time didn't you."

She was dressed in the usual white tank top and short black skirt now and a small bag similar to mine was slung across her shoulder. In answer to my irritation Tifa simply kissed me again making my mind go blank once more.

"I'm still not happy about this," Tifa said when she released me again.

"Huh?" God, I must've sounded like I was on drugs or something. It took my mind a few moments to catch up with Tifa and me. "Well we're still going."

"I know, I know. I've written Yuffie a note to tell her where we've gone. You know it's dangerous-"

"You'll just have to protect me then won't you," I said with a smile, cutting her off before she could get started.

"With pleasure." Her right hand hit my side clumsily before groping for my hand which she claimed as her own without hesitation.

And I let her. I belonged to Tifa Lockheart now.

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We walked hand in hand for three days, stopping only when necessary and taking a boat to the North Continent from a small port town I've forgotten the name of. Walking, well, marching almost, at my brisk pace we managed to reach an excavation site called Bone Village at dusk on the third day.

Mom had told me that the forgotten city was protected by various enchantments to keep ordinary people at bay. The Sleeping Forest was one of those enchantments. If any human wandered in there without a Lunar Harp then they would be trapped and die there, from starvation more than anything else. But since I am Cetran the forest would allow me and any person with me to pass through safely.

That was one of the reasons that I had been reluctant to bring anyone, aside from the danger. At first I hadn't known this and I thought any who would follow would die. But I'm glad that's not the case. Tifa has a special ability to keep me at ease by simply being in my presence so I wasn't regretting bringing her. Not to mention the promising fact that there was the very certain possibility of a kiss whenever we stopped.

The people of Bone Village were starting to finish their days digging when we turned up in the town. Tifa dropped my hand as soon as we went through the entrance much to my protest, but before I could say anything she placed a finger on my lips, winked and said, "I'll tell you later."

We were noticed almost immediately by one of the diggers, probably because we both wore distinctive clothing compared to everyone else. He stood swiftly, dropping his trowel, and bowed respectfully to us. I still found it difficult to conceal my smile, even though it was a nice gesture.

"How can I help you?" he asked politely.

Tifa spoke for the both us, saving me the trouble.

"We're going north to Icicle Inn," she said. "But we would like to rest here if that's alright, just for the night."

"Of course, if you'll follow me we'll sort something out for you."

So he walked off and we followed closely behind him. It turned out that everyone in the town was dressed similarly to our guide. The men wore green and the women wore purple, not that it seemed necessary. We were introduced to a man who was digging just outside what seemed to be the only actual building in the village (since the main form of shelter appeared to be tents). After hurried introductions, and consent to stay from the man who appeared to be the leader, we were shown to a room.

Rather disappointingly the room had two single beds and as soon as we were left alone I let out an irritated huff because of it. Tifa smiled at me and before I even said a word she said, "We can push the beds together."

Smiling I threw myself down onto one of the beds and enjoyed the comfort of it that I hadn't felt since Gongaga. Tifa glanced around the room for a few moments more before sitting at the foot of my bed. I sighed in sheer contentment and could already feel myself becoming tired.

"I hope you aren't planning on sleeping," Tifa said. The statement startled me not only because I hadn't been expecting it, but because her body was now hovering above mine supported by her hands and knees and I hadn't even heard her move.

"No, not yet anyway," but the lie was ruined by a very ungainly yawn.

"Come on. Get up you lazy bum," she said as she dragged me off the bed by one of my legs directly onto the floor. "Let's go watch the sunset at the beach."

"We passed the beach before," I moaned, still lying on the floor. "I'm too tired to get up."

"Y'know you're just like Cloud. He's lazy too."

"I'm not lazy," I retorted, finally managing to sit up. "Just tired."

She laughed at me, probably because I was sitting in a most childish position, but I didn't ask why. Instead my mind was focused on another question.

"So why aren't we allowed too hold hands in public anymore? Have you gone off me?"

"Firstly," Tifa said, still laughing slightly, "we've never held hands in public, just in the wilderness. Secondly I could never go off someone as beautiful as you. And thirdly I want to keep 'us' a secret."

I sat up straighter than I'd ever sat in my life. Surely she wasn't ashamed of being with me. I think my face must have held the same horrified expression because she immediately changed her tone.

"What I mean to say is it'll be more fun if it's a secret."

"More fun?" I still didn't have a clue what she meant.

"You know, more exciting."

"Oh," I said simply, "But we can still hold hands now right?"

"Well," she said smiling at me in a very suggestive way. "We could but I have other ideas in mind."

"Like what?"

I can't really say what Tifa whispered heavily into my ear because it's embarrassing and just a bit scandalous. Let's just say that no-one's ever elicited a stronger blush out of me. Besides I'd never even considered some of the things she told me that she wanted to do either with me or (as occurred more often) to me so I couldn't begin to explain. Tifa's a very deceptive person. Although she can act as innocently as me at times she really does have a filthy mind in private.

For the same reasons as I gave before I won't go into what we did after either. But by the end of it we were both quite exhausted and very, very happy.

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The next morning dawned quite brightly for me despite the fact that the skies were really murky. True to her word Tifa had pushed both the beds together the night before and I simply lay there when I awoke, Tifa sleeping soundly beside me. Outside I could already hear the sounds of digging, even though it was only very early morning. Stomach rumbling, after a while I tried to get out of bed but the moment I tried, Tifa, almost on instinct, increased her grip around my waist. Just like that moonlit night in Gongaga I struggled but her grip was much too strong to break out of.

With no other option I turned on my side so I could look Tifa in the face.

"Tifa," I said lightly, nudging her just as lightly on the shoulder. "Tifa."

And she called _me_ a heavy sleeper. Moving so my face was right up next to hers I blew some of my cold breath into her face. That did the trick. She stirred, opened one eye in a lazy kind of way and said "S'too early Aeris."

"Just let me go and you can go back to sleep again."

"M'kay," she slurred, releasing her grip on my waist. Slipping out of bed and picking up my clothes which had been hastily discarded the night before, I dressed, arranged my hair and walked out the room. Before I'd even started on my braid Tifa had already gone back to sleep.

The canteen of the building we were in could easily have accommodated about fifty people but when I got there it was deserted. I simply shrugged, revived myself a little more over a bowl of cereal and waited a while for Tifa. When I saw how unlikely it was that she would be out of bed before noon I left the already empty cafeteria and stepped outside.

Just like the day before the leader of the excavation was digging not too far from the building. He looked up as he heard my footsteps approaching and beckoned for me to come closer. He showed me a find he had just unearthed mere moments before I stepped out. It was a very small harp, easy enough to carry, completely black aside from golden strings and decorated with white specks and orbs.

"It's nice isn't it," he said, not asking but rather stating. "It's called a Lunar Harp. There's a legend that says anyone who has the Lunar Harp can go through the Sleeping Forest unhindered."

He pointed over to the trees standing silently at one end of the encampment. That was the place were the fewest people were digging and most of them kept looking over their shoulder every other minute or so, as if expecting a monster to storm out at any moment.

"Your friend said you're going to Icicle Inn," he said, carrying on the conversation.

"Uh yeah that's right."

"If you want you can stay here for a few days. Now we've found the harp we'll send an expedition in to see what's there and you two can come with us."

"Why not go now?"

"We don't know what's in there. So we're waiting for a few mercenaries we hired to get here before we go in."

My mind immediately went to Cloud when he said the word 'mercenaries' and the old worry about how he was crept back up on me.

"Miss?"

"Oh sorry," I said, bringing myself back down to earth, "I was miles away. But it's alright. We'll be on our way once my friend decides to wake up."

He began digging with his trowel again, effectively dismissing me. With nowhere else to go my feet automatically took me back to my room. Rather unsurprisingly Tifa was still sprawled out sleeping on the bed, a little exposed were the sheets failed to cover her properly. An idea most foul popped into my mind upon seeing her. Smiling something evil I crouched down beside the bed, put my face right up to Tifa's and yelled "BOO!"

I don't think I've seen anything quite as funny yet plainly terrifying in my life. She jumped so high it looked like she was going to go through the ceiling before she started looking about the room as if expecting attackers. I myself was on my back laughing so hard it hurt. The next thing I knew I was being dragged onto my feet by an enraged looking Tifa who was shouting so many profanities it was like being dragged into the middle of a drinking contest with Barret and Cid. The effect probably would have been more scary though if she'd been wearing clothes.

After her five minute rant of non stop verbal abuse (with a lot of death threats) she fell silent but still held me up by the scruff of my dress.

"I'm sorry. Did I wake you?"

If I had been anyone else I'd probably have been on my back sporting a black eye. Instead she simply shoved my lightly onto the bed and climbed on top of me again.

"Tifa…" I began but she simply put a finger on my lips just like she had the day before and started unbuttoning the front of my dress.

"I want my revenge," she whispered into my ear with an evil smile of her own.

"No Tifa," I said, slapping her hands away from the buttons. "Don't forget why we're here."

She looked sulky. She looked downright rebellious and her hands twitched as if longing to be undoing the buttons again. Instead of saying anything though she simply rolled off me and started dressing. Well I was right about her being sulky. She didn't talk to me again until I said I was sorry (among other unrepeatable things).

"Why can't we just wait for Cloud and the others?" Tifa asked while we walked down the corridor. It had been a very short sulky silence.

"This needs to be done as soon as possible and we've taken too much time already. Besides Sephiroth keeps on terrorizing Cloud's mind. I don't want to see him hurt again."

"You looked to be the one who was hurt more last time," she muttered.

"I'll pretend I didn't hear that."

Once we left the building we yelled our thanks and goodbyes to the still digging leader and set off in the direction of the forest. As we passed the ever dwindling number of diggers their looks became more fearful the fewer they were, until one such person tried to stop us physically while warning us about the danger of the forest. We didn't stop. Instead we just walked around him and before anyone else could stop us we were wending a path through the trees.

It didn't take long for us to find the main path through the forest. When we approached it green light flashed around us and a voice speaking in a language neither of us could understand could be heard. We were both unnerved but Tifa grabbed my hand roughly and squeezed it to reassure me. She was back to being the strong one. Well, I suppose she always had been.

The path was clear so our journey through the forest passed quite quickly. Soon enough we found ourselves standing on a staircase that looked like the spine of some long dead gigantic creature, looking into the icy flats below. We descended but there's no point into doing into detail about that part of the journey.

And then we were there. The lost city is without question one of the oddest places I've ever seen. It was beautiful but in a weird sort of way. Great shells rose from the ground as dwellings, Cetran magic felt as commonplace as the air we breathed yet the oddest thing of all was the voices. When we stepped onto the path leading into the inner city I heard voices, many voices, all singing in the same unintelligible language as in the forest but I wasn't the only one who could hear it. Tifa was looking all around us as if expecting people to suddenly pop out of the ground.

"What are they singing?"

It was strange but all of a sudden my mind went blank, all I could see was blinding whiteness, but I could understand what the voices were saying at last.

_The man of death approaches bringing evil in his wake,_

_An ancient evil resides within him that claimed us millennia ago,_

_He has the weapon and he seeks to use it,_

_But he doesn't realize that he is the weapon._

_Young Cetra, brave guardian, summon the white magic and we shall aid you._

_Your love entwined must save us or the world shall vanish in fire and death._

_You have been accepted, go to the inner chamber._

_We will wait there._

"Aeris? Aeris, can you hear me?"

I was flat on my back with no memory whatsoever of getting there. Tifa was kneeling right beside me, nudging my shoulders and calling out my name.

"Uh what happened?"

"You started singing along with those voices and then you kind of passed out, but only for a few seconds."

"The voices," I said in a panicky voice as I sat up, grabbing Tifa's shoulders hastily. "Tifa, the voices. They weren't singing, they were warning us. Sephiroth's coming. He's following us."

"How do you-"

"No time to explain," I said as I rose to my feet. I remember looking over my shoulder as if expecting to find Sephiroth standing there, all evil smiles and laughs. But there was nothing there. "Come on."

I dragged Tifa behind me in my haste to get to where the voices told me to go. The spirits (since I assume that's what they are) guided us all the way so it didn't take us long to find it. It was easily the most distinctive building there. Surrounded by a pool of water, the building towered into the sky, casting shadows in all directions. The water was still and never moving even when I threw a stone into it.

After sparing a quick glance at Tifa, who was in as much awe of the building as I was, I pulled her over to the door that wasn't too far away. The inside of the building wasn't grand yet it seemed to command just as much respect as it did on the outside. The spire was built along a giant crystal statue which was in the semblance of a fish half way up the path. We both stared at the fish statue (Tifa in confusion and I in fascination) before making our way up towards it.

Then there was the cracking noise. Before we had even reached where the statue was it had disappeared. Instead a long crystal staircase had appeared in its place. Somehow I knew this was the way into the inner chamber that the Cetran spirits had told me of. The stairs were inviting but before my foot had stepped on the first Tifa pulled me backwards.

"Tifa what're you doing?"

"It might not be safe. I'm going first."

"Tifa no-"

She pushed me against the wall behind us before I could even finish my sentence. There was a look in her eyes that was simply indescribable. She seemed caring yet utterly determined at the same time.

"Listen Aeris. I don't know what is down there or what we're supposed to be facing. But I know I love you. And I know I can't let you go down there first if there's even the slightest possibility that there's something down there waiting for us. Don't follow me until I yell for you, ok?"

I didn't know what to say. She was still looking at me, still determined to go first and there was nothing to be done to stop her. So I nodded my head. She let go of me and turned to the staircase, but not before stealing a quick kiss from me first.

"I'll see you in a minute."

Her first step was tentative, since she probably expected the whole thing to collapse under her bodyweight. But it didn't so she continued to descend with more speed and confidence. Soon she was out of sight altogether and I was left to my worried thoughts.

I sat alone at the top of the steps for ten minutes, each second passing increasing my anxiety. She hadn't yelled or made any sign to show that she was alright. Just as I rose to my feet though I heard the echoing sounds of a persons footsteps on the stairs.

It was Tifa and from the looks of it she hadn't be mauled or attacked or anything gruesome. Apart from being slightly out of breath and red in the face she looked exactly the same as she had when she left me. Without comment I helped her sit down on the stairs until she got her breath back.

"Sorry I didn't yell," was the first thing she said to me. "I was gonna but I thought it'd be better to keep as quiet as possible."

"Yeah I guess. We don't want to wake up a monster or something… there _aren't_ monsters down there, are there?"

"No, no it's safe enough."

We walked down the stairs together this time but Tifa still went in front, eyes searching every corner for anything that might even be considered dangerous. I myself gazed around in wonder. The inner sanctum of the city was far grander than anything else we'd seen so far, in the city or otherwise. The crystal staircase seemed to descend for miles as we passed structures built of the same material. At the bottom of the staircase we passed a giant statue of a woman in robes that was twice as tall as we were, staring intently in the same direction as us.

On the other side of the woman was water, like we'd saw outside but in greater quantities. Also in the middle of the water stood an altar that shone so brightly it looked to be made of flowing water itself. To this day I'm convinced it is. To get there one had to go across a series of stepping stones. It was this altar that the statue was watching.

"I guess we have to cross."

I tensed my body up for a jump and then leapt. It was a close call that I narrowly avoided falling in the water once I'd landed on the pedestal. Still I managed to right myself and then went across the next load of stepping stones without any incident. Tifa followed right behind me much more quickly and gracefully.

"So, what now?" Tifa asked as she looked around.

The answer came on instinct since the spirits hadn't told me what to do when I got this far.

"I have to pray. I need to pray for Holy to protect the planet."

She looked at me in surprise for a moment but said nothing.

"Then I'll keep a look out for you."

It was a whim but one I felt that needed to be fulfilled. Rather than kneeling I went up behind Tifa and held her close to me.

"Aeris what-"

"Ssh I just want to say something first."

She tried to turn in my arms but my grip only got tighter. Taking the hint she stopped trying to turn.

"I just want to say… thank you Tifa. I don't know where I'd be if you hadn't come with me. But… I want to thank you as well for loving me. Because you know even though we've only been together for a little while it makes me feel-"

"Stop."

She did turn this time even though I tried to stop her. It was uncomfortable under her gaze. She held me cautiously as if expecting me to do the unexpected. I always felt safe in those arms but this time it felt different.

"Why are you telling me this?" she asked, her voice just as inquisitive as her gaze.

"I-I don't know. I just want you to know in case anything happens."

Unexplainably I found myself weeping into her shoulder.

"Aeris, don't cry Aeris. Nothing will ever separate me and you. We'll all defeat Sephiroth and it'll all be because of you."

"But what if something happens?"

"Nothing will happen. I promise."

Reassured, yet still slightly tearful, I let go of Tifa and knelt on the cold floor of the altar with my hands held together in front of me with my eyes firmly shut. The last thing I saw was Tifa standing by the entrance of the altar staring into the distance.

It was the most curious sensation when the prayer began. I felt lighter than air as my mind went an absolute blank. Around me I could feel rather than hear the chants of the Cetran spirits, all of them helping me call for Holy. I prayed for the world and all its children and that Holy might save all that.

"That isn't good enough," one of the voices said inside my head. "You need to pray for something stronger."

"Like what? What's more important than the world?"

"We already told you. We can't help you in your prayer, only help you strengthen it."

I tried to remember what they spirits had told me before. Then it occurred to me.

_Young Cetra, brave guardian, summon the white magic and we shall aid you._

_Your love entwined must save us or the world shall vanish in fire and death._

My eyes opened again, just by a fraction, to look at Tifa, who was still turned away from me.

"I'll pray for her," I told the spirits, and so I did.

Another curious sensation overwhelmed me after I did. The chants of the spirits grew louder and I could feel myself glowing. I just managed to hear a shocked gasp from Tifa but she did nothing. The materia that was kept in my hair ribbon started to burn and glow hotter than the sun, but it wasn't at all painful. Then there was nothing. The chants ended, the glow faded, but the feeling of weightlessness remained.

"You've done well," the same spirit from before told me. "Holy will come on the day of our fate."

My eyes fluttered open but Tifa wasn't there. Instead she was on my left. I turned to look at her but was surprised to see a panicked expression on her face as she looked above me. Then she looked to me.

"AERIS, MOVE."

The next few seconds passed as a dull blur of white and black. All I heard was a swish of wind and a dull thud. When my mind caught up I looked up to see quite a sight. Sephiroth was standing on the altar, his massive sword had impaled the floor where I had been kneeling just a few moments before. Tifa was already on her feet and before Sephiroth could tug his sword out of the floor she had delivered a kick to his head, knocking him backwards.

"For god sake Aeris, run," she yelled as soon as had kicked our enemy.

Her yell brought my reflexes back into sharp focus and I rose quickly to my feet. Sephiroth shifted his green eyes to me, staring at me silently for a moment, before walking towards me quite rationally. Again Tifa got in his way stepping between me and him. Sephiroth stopped entirely, less than a foot from Tifa.

"Move aside girl. I'm not interested in you."

"If you want to get to her you'll have to kill me first."

He regarded Tifa with his cold green eyes for just a fraction of a moment before smiling that wicked smile of his.

"If that's your wish…"

"Tifa, no," I yelled. No-one moved. Everyone just stared at me. "You can't."

She flashed me a tiny smile of her own before mouthing, "Watch me."

Her attack was absolutely vicious and his retaliation just at much. They threw punches and kicks at each other so fast that sometimes I didn't even see the blows until they were blocked or dodged. They kept fighting without pause and without advantage for who knows how long. Every now and again one or the other would throw a taunt or a rebuke.

"Is that the best the great Sephiroth can do?" Tifa taunted, while she held both his fists in her hands.

He smirked at her before pushing back her hands with inhuman strength so that her arms went into the air leaving her completely exposed. And he didn't let up his advantage. He kicked her in the stomach so hard that she flew across the altar and hit one of the crystal walls. It all happened so slowly. I ran to her side and was there just as she hit the floor. She was unconscious and I could see a small trickle of blood coming from her scalp.

"It didn't have to be that way," Sephiroth said as he tugged his sword effortlessly from the ground. "If you'd just given yourself up I wouldn't have had to hurt your friend at all."

Before I even knew what I was doing I'd flung a Fire 3 spell at him. But with an idle flick of his wrist Sephiroth erected a magical shield which blocked the spell.

"We all have to die eventually," he said as he approached me, reflecting another spell I sent as he did. "As you know, all will die soon. But I want the pleasure of killing you personally."

I cast one last spell at Sephiroth but again he blocked it with an idle flick of his wrist. There was no hope for me to escape alive. So I stood, ready to die on my feet rather than on my knees.

And I most certainly would've done if it hadn't been for the gunshot. In spite of ourselves we both looked to the crystal staircase and before I knew it I was smiling. Vincent was stood there with his gun aimed at Sephiroth, barrel still smoking, while the others were already near the bottom of the staircase. Sephiroth recovered first and lunged towards me with his sword. I only just managed to dodge and once again his sword sank into the altar. I tried to hit him in the head with my staff but he managed to block me with his arm. However he didn't dodge the bullet that lodged itself in his shoulder.

His hand flew to his shoulder but he didn't even wince or cry out as he pulled the bullet out of the wound. Throwing it to the ground his eyes flashed with rage as they landed on me again. Forgetting his sword he advanced towards me again but Yuffie's shuriken distracted him, letting me dodge to his side. Yuffie was already standing on the wall of the altar by the time her shuriken returned to her. The next moment I saw Vincent jumping from the staircase and landed rather smoothly on my left hand side, despite how high up he'd been.

"Hey Aeris," Yuffie greeted me as casually as though we weren't fighting to the death with our greatest enemy.

"Cloud will be here soon," Vincent said to me before turning to Sephiroth. "You should run Sephiroth. Others of equal skill to yours are coming."

"Yeah," Yuffie yelled while jumping down to my right side. "Better go before we kick your ass."

Sephiroth's eyes wandered across each of us in turn while taking in the sounds of the growing footsteps.

"A parting gift then," he said, throwing a tentacle of Jenova's at our feet before disappearing.

The tentacle grew rapidly until it was three times our height and in a deformed humanoid shape. Vincent and Yuffie immediately dropped into fighting stances and attacked Jenova as it let out a blood curdling shriek. I supported them with magic but we didn't look to be making any progress at all. But when a blade beam I recognised as Cloud's flew through the air and hit Jenova where her head should have been, she collapsed, let out one more shriek and evaporated before us.

While Yuffie jumped up and down as happy as ever as she was when we won a battle I was the only one who looked over to the other wall. Tifa was still sitting against the wall staring at her outstretched legs. But she still wasn't moving. Their eyes followed me as I rushed to her side but I didn't care. My mind was solely focused on the limp figure in my vision.

"Tifa? Tifa?"

I raised her head with both my hands only to feel some liquid ooze over them. I already knew what it was before I even looked. It was her blood, a steady flow coming from her scalp and her lips. Someone put their hand on my shoulder but I couldn't take my eyes off her. Even now she still looked beautiful in an eerie sort of way.

000000

Tifa wasn't able to keep the promise she made me on that altar. She… died protecting me. That is why no-one sees as she grips my hand like she did that night in Gongaga. Because she's not here. But I'm not upset. Not anymore. Instead I smile my no ghostly smile since I know she wouldn't want me to be sad. I can still hear her even though she's gone. And even now I still belong to her. All through the battle against Sephiroth I could feel her strength flow through me and her voice whispering encouraging words to me. I was the one that threw the final spell that killed Sephiroth in his temporal form. I watched him die and I enjoyed every moment of it. But now, as I stand on the deck of what remains of the Highwind, I wonder, what do I do now?

After the battle on the altar we laid Tifa to rest in a shallow grave in the City of the Ancients. It wasn't a befitting end. Not for someone like her. But it was the best we could do. No-one knows about the love we did and still do share. That's why Yuffie, someone I'd trust with my life, will never understand why I began to grieve truly when she gave me the note Tifa left her. I read the last line over and over again and I know I'll never forget those words.

_We'll be back when this is all over._

But it's over now isn't it?


End file.
